Adventures in Fatherhood
by Em Dixon
Summary: Zuko was absolutely sure about what kind of father he didn't want to be. Being a dad wouldn't always be easy, but he would always love them more than life itself. Lots of fluff. Zutara.
1. Growing Up

Zuko sat in the window of the nursery, his infant daughter cradled in his arms, her twin already fast asleep in his crib. Ira slowly blinked her golden eyes at him as she wrapped her tiny hand around his finger. Already, at just a few months old, she had a mess of curly brown hair, just like her mother.

"Hi, princess," he whispered, gently stroking her cheek.

He kissed her forehead, and she smiled at him, melting his heart.

"I promise to be a better father to you," he said for the thousandth time. "I promise that I will love you with everything that I have in me."

Zuko turned at a sharp whimper from the nursery doorway. Tiny three year old Kurzu was clinging to the edge of the doorway, his big blue eyes brimming with tears. He gasped and tried to hide when he realized he'd been noticed. Zuko smiled softly, remembering stories his mother had told him about his and Azula's early years. He held his hand out to Kurzu, beckoning for the child to come closer. It took a while, but eventually he inched his way over, and Zuko scooped him up, holding Kurzu just as close as he held Ira.

"This is your baby sister," he whispered.

"No baby."

Kurzu refused to look, crossing his arms and sniffling.

"I know it's hard because you're not the youngest anymore," Zuko said, hugging his son tighter. "But these are your babies, too, you know. Your little sister and your little brother. They'll need your help, so you'll have to be a good big brother for them."

"No baby," Kurzu insisted.

"You'll have to teach them how to walk and talk, how to feed themselves, and how to pet the turtleducks."

Kurzu still shook his head, but at least he'd turned toward his sister. Gently, Zuko took Kurzu's hand and brought it toward Ira, and she grabbed onto this finger and put it in her mouth. Kurzu tried to resist a smile, but it slowly spread across his face, and he let out a little giggle.

"It tickle daddy!"

Zuko laughed, holding his babies close.

"Can you say sister?"

"Sister?" Kurzu mumbled.

"Now, say Ira?"

"Iya?"

"Good boy."

Zuko leaned back against wall as Ira yawned and settled down. Kurzu still hadn't let go of her hand, and all was fine for the moment. He didn't doubt that they'd have to have this conversation many more times in the coming years and months. For now, though, his son was reassured.

"You will always be my prince," Zuko said, his eyes closed. "No matter how old you get, you'll be my little princes and princess."

Kurzu yawned and burrowed closer to him, and Zuko raised his temperature to keep them all warm. He sighed contentedly. They should really all get in the bed, but for the moment, he was comfortable just where he was.

* * *

><p>AN: Written in celebration for 100+ followers on Tumblr. Intended to be a series of shorts about Zuko's being a giant dork of a father. Besides, I needed some fluff after anime destroyed my feels this morning.


	2. Dating

Zuko walked into the common room, intending to grab a quick nap before he and Katara had to make an appearance at the Fire Nation Academy's festival that evening. He walked past a table that had a few snacks on it and the sweet scent of moon peach blossoms caught his attention. With a slight smile, Zuko turned around and headed back, hoping his favorite custard was there.

"Hm," Zuko said, narrowing his eyes and scratching his chin. "_Hm_."

It was not, in fact, his favorite dessert, but a large bouquet of moon peach blossoms and fire lilies in an ornate vase of red and gold marble. He plucked the card out of the top of the bouquet with two fingers like it was made of poison.

"To the…_sweetest blossom_…that will ever bloom? Oh, come on."

Zuko sighed. Lei's name was written in careful, and probably much practiced, calligraphy at the bottom of the card. Someone had sent flowers and chocolate dipped moon peaches to his youngest daughter. He ate one of the moon peach slices. So this was it, then. All of his children were now dating, and Lei wasn't even thirteen yet, which really didn't sit well with him at all. She was just a kid. Zuko ate another moon peach as he stared at the card. The boy—and he better not be a day over thirteen since Lei's birthday was next month—didn't even leave his name.

There was a slight creak, and Zuko looked up in time to see Lei cringe and try to close her bedroom door.

"Here. Now."

He pointed to the couch, and Lei hesitated before leaving her room, and when she finally did, Zuko saw why. She was wearing a _dress_. Lei had always been the odd turtleduck in their family; of all of their children, she was the only one who didn't rely on her bending. She'd always preferred her knives and swords to waterbending, and when she was old enough to dress herself, she immediately ripped out the bows Katara forced on her and opted for far more practical clothing. She'd cut her hair short and wore pants, and never went anywhere without weapons strapped to her. Zuko had taken to calling her his little warrior; she always looked prepared for battle.

And now, nervous golden eyes looked at him, waiting to be inspected, and part of Zuko felt very, very sad. She was just as beautiful as her sisters and brothers, there was no doubt about it. She had her hair twisted and pinned up with two carefully placed Tui and La hair ornaments. Her hanfu-style dress was a pale pink at the top and gradually became the deeper, rich pink of moon peach blossoms just before they fell, and there was even a delicate leaf embroidery around the edges. It was very modest, very age appropriate. There was nothing he could complain about.

Zuko sighed and ate another moon peach slice before sitting down and patting the spot next to him. He didn't know what to say. There weren't many legitimate objections he could make. He couldn't demand that she stay a child forever, which is really what he wanted. He grabbed the tray of moon peaches and they just sat there in silence, eating the peaches until they were gone, and Zuko supposed he had to say something since he called her out there, and he _did_ eat half of her peaches before she got to have any.

"So, what's his name? He didn't put it on the card."

Lei blushed a deep red. "Enlai."

"How old is he?"

Lei fidgeted, and hung her head, suddenly very interested in the patterns on her dress. She mumbled something too quietly for him to hear.

"_Lei_."

"He's thirteen, but he'll be fourteen in a few months, but by then it won't matter because _I'll_ be thirteen, and really, he's not that much older than me."

She groaned and hid her face in her hands, and Zuko sighed, wishing there were more moon peaches. Then he felt a little sad again. No one loved moon peaches like he and Lei, and one of his favorite things to do was sit with her in the garden and eat moon peaches until they felt sick. It didn't look like she'd have much time for that anymore. All of his babies had grown up, and they were all running out of time for him. He'd hoped to be able to keep Lei to himself a little longer, but it didn't look like that would be happening at all.

"I take it he's the reason you decided to go your school's festival after all?"

"Maybe."

"Hm. Ok."

Zuko stood, and with a gasp, Lei shot off the couch, her face horrified, and she grabbed his hand, tugging on it to keep him from leaving. Zuko fought very hard to keep the smile off his face.

"That's it? That's all you're going to say?"

"Believe me," he said, patting her cheek. "I tried to find a reason to object. He's not too much older than you, you're dressed modestly, you're meeting at a school function. I'll be there, your mother will be there, your brothers and sisters will be there. The only points against him are his cheesy writing and that he didn't leave his name."

Zuko shrugged and tried to walk away, but Lei didn't let him go, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at him.

"We talk, you know," she said. "Kurzu told me that you had General Jee thoroughly investigate his first girlfriend _and_ her family. And Kya said that you had her followed for _four months_!"

"I do my best to make sure my babies are safe," Zuko said, kissing Lei's cheek. "Have fun tonight."

Zuko gently pried Lei's hand away from his and closed the door behind him. He did, indeed do all of those things, and there were many others that none of the children knew about. Because of who they were, and who their family was, dating for them wouldn't be easy. There would always be the chance that someone was using his children to get to either him or Katara, or to find some favor with any of them, really, even Sokka, Suki, Toph or Aang. Theirs was an incredibly powerful family. Zuko felt that he would be a terrible father if he didn't try to protect his children from that.

Of course, the first place he went was to visit Jee to have this kid checked out. Then he'd get some more moon peaches.


	3. Not Stalking

Adventures in Fatherhood: Not Stalking

Zuko peered around a row of bookshelves in the library, trying to sneak a look into the small cubby where his seventeen year old son was cuddled with his newest girl, Jia. Kurzu made some really ridiculous joke, and the girl tittered behind her hand. Zuko rolled his eyes, especially at the way Kurzu was puffing his chest out and wrapping his arm around the girl.

"Hm."

Zuko did not like her. She was pretty enough, and very popular according to all the reports he'd collected on her. Her family was incredibly ambitious. Her mother was from the Fire Nation island of Kirachu and her father from Ba Sing Se, and they'd merged two powerful families to make one even more powerful one. If Zuko had ever been interested in making a political match for his children, this girl, Jia, would have been a perfect choice for Kurzu. That, however, was the last thing that Zuko wanted. Too bad he couldn't say the same for the girl's father, which made Zuko suspicious of anything she did. True, that might not have been a fair judgment, which was exactly why he needed to keep an eye on things. Children were known to rebel against their parents. And who knows, she might actually have a genuine interest in his son. Which is why he needed to keep an eye on things.

"There is a tournament coming up next month," Jia said, batting her eyelashes at Kurzu. "I was hoping you might take me to the party afterwards."

"Yeah, but that's only for the winners," Kurzu said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

Jia scooted closer, placing a hand lightly on Kurzu's thigh, the other resting on his shoulder.

"I've seen you fight. I'm putting my money on you."

Zuko narrowed his eyes to mere slits as Jia leaned in and kissed Kurzu lightly on the cheek. He'd finally made up his mind that he needed to intervene until he sorted through all of the information that Jee and his team had gathered on her family.

"Zuko, what the hell are you doing?"

He started at Katara's harsh whisper, and barely had a moment to do anything before she yanked him by the collar and took him away from the two would-be lovebirds.

"You can't stalk him! This is his first serious girlfriend."

Zuko snorted as Katara removed a few books so that she could peer at the kids. He looked through the opening she made, as the two shared a kiss.

"You would have ruined his first kiss," Katara said, elbowing him.

"Please, this isn't his first kiss."

"My baby—"

"Katara, no boy is _ever_ going to tell his mom about his first kiss."

She tried to turn to glare at him, but Zuko just pinned her against the bookshelves so she couldn't move, his mouth by her ear.

"Have you read the report about her family?"

"Zuko, really."

They watched Kurzu stand and hold his hand out for Jia. Her every move seemed calculated to catch their son's attention, and it was working. A part of Zuko felt pity for his son. The poor boy clearly was smitten by the girl, and that's what made it so important that she wasn't trying to manipulate him.

"So, did you read it?" Zuko asked.

"Maybe."

As Jia walked away, she held her hand out to Kurzu, and he took a few long strides to catch up.

"Like father, like son," Katara said with a slight laugh. "Just promise you won't have them followed this time."

Katara gave Zuko a stern look, but he only shook his head.

"No promises."

* * *

><p>AN: So, I think Zuko would be a little more open about meddling in his kids' lives, while Katara would try to pretend that she's not. He'd probably try to parent like Iroh parented him, and Iroh was _very_ involved in Zuko's life. Plus, I think he'd go a little overboard in trying to keep them safe and protect them, not just from physical harm, but from the scheming as well. I just love Dadko.


	4. Needs

**Needs**

Zuko watched his beautiful wife as she brushed her hair at the vanity, fresh out of the bath and completely naked. As she stood, he let his eyes travel over the curves of her body, the swell of her breasts, the shape of her hips, finally coming to rest on the most perfectly round butt he'd ever seen. She'd always been graceful, and Zuko watched her legs as she walked over to the armoire and opened it up to pick a nightgown.

Even after a war, even after five kids, she was still the most beautiful woman that he'd ever seen. He walked up behind her, gently grabbing the nightgown away from her.

"I'm surprised it took you this long," she said, leaning back against him.

"Sometimes I like to look."

Zuko brushed her hair to the side, exposing her neck, and she tilted her head for him, inviting him.

"The kids are in bed, there's no work that needs to be done in the middle of the night. It's been _two months_ since we've had some alone time."

He punctuated every few words with a kiss or the flick of his tongue, and when Katara's knees got weak, he placed his hands on her hips. She didn't disappoint, rolling her hips and grinding against him, and he grunted, tightening his grip on her.

"Mmm, we're always so busy," she said, her voice breathy.

Katara pulled away, turning to face Zuko, and he loved the way she bit her lip, the way she was completely confident as she pushed him backwards until he hit the bed, and she shoved his shoulder harder, forcing him to lay back as she straddled him. Zuko didn't stop his smile, letting his hands travel down her back, giving her a firm smack on the bottom. She bit his neck where she was sucking, her hands roaming over his bare chest.

A loud bang and an angry yell that they were all too familiar with tore through the family room, and Zuko was about ready to rip the sheets and set them on fire as Katara rolled off of him, going to the armoire for a robe. It wasn't long before the tornado that was their warring daughters came to their room, Ira banging against the door as loud as she possibly could.

"Mom! Dad!"

"If you don't stop banging on that door this instant, I swear to Agni!"

"Dad, you don't understand, I can't live like this."

Zuko rolled his eyes and looked at Katara. Ira and Kya had been having some war for the past two weeks, and for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what they were fighting about. Katara was leaning against the bedpost, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Which one do you want?" she asked, sounding incredibly annoyed as she moved toward the door.

Kya started pounding on the door and yelling, and when she started, Ira started up again, and both girls were yelling. Katara ripped the door open, nearly tearing the door off its hinges.

"_Enough_. Both of you."

Beyond the two girls, Khan and Kurzu were standing in the doorway to their room watching their sisters fight, and Lei had the nerve to sit in her doorway, eating a snack. One way or another, this feud needed to end.

"Kya, with me," Zuko said, marching the younger girl out of the family room. "Ira, you're with your mom. The rest of you go back to bed. You're still going to school in the morning."

As they stepped out in the hallway, Zuko took a few deep breaths to calm himself. He needed to put his frustrations aside and deal with The War of the Daughters.


	5. Hot Wife

**Hot Wife**

It was the middle of summer, and Agni seemed dead set on baking everyone to a crisp. The summer season at Ember Island was only two weeks away, and everyone was doing their best to focus on the last of the meetings before they were free to run away to the fun of Ember Island. For once, Zuko found himself somewhat anxious to get away, too. For the moment, though, he was stuck in his office, listening to final reports from his agriculture, financial, and cultural ministers.

"We've had a record year, your majesty," Agricultural Minister Risa was saying. "We are on track to be at full production capacity within the next two years."

Zuko nodded, feeling restless as he paced his office, coming to stand in front of the windows overlooking the private gardens. He only half listened as Minister Risa droned on about possibilities for next year, and increasing exports or decreasing imports and something else as his attention quickly slipped away when he noticed Katara. She was down by the pond, aggressively bending the water, scowling as she collected all of the water in the pond and held it above her head in a perfect globe. Her movements were graceful and smooth, and as she spun, sending the water back into the pond, he could almost hear grunt with the effort of keeping all of the water contained.

"Your majesty?"

"Continue. I'm listening."

She was wiping sweat from her forehead, then bundling her hair on top of her head. Then undoing the ties on her already small dress and discarding it. When she bent over to put her neatly folded dress on the ground, Zuko found himself smiling and his mind quickly filling with thoughts of what he'd like to do to her in that position. She had on tiny blue shorts, and when she stood up, Zuko almost choked as she ran her fingers along the edge of her shorts to unstick them from her butt, arching her back and looking over her shoulder. When she returned to her bending, she seemed a little more comfortable, but Zuko could see the sweat rolling down her back as she switched to Southern Style bending, swaying her hips in languid, exaggerated patterns, her eyes closed and her lips slightly parted. Her upper wrappings did little to hide anything from the imagination, and Zuko was glad that she was in the royal family's private gardens.

"Um… Your majesty?"

Zuko started, turning away from the window. His advisors looked highly irritated, but at the moment, Zuko didn't have the strength or the presence of mind to care.

"If your majesty has too many things to take care of at the moment, we can always reschedule this meeting after the Ember Island season."

"No," Zuko said with a sigh. "It's better to get this over with."

"Well then, Crown Prince Kurzu is wishing to have a larger hand in the cultural activities. With Lady Ursa's role being reduced, I think this would be a perfect time for her to hand her responsibilities to him."

Zuko turned back toward the window and nodded. "That's fine."

Katara was sticking with Southern Style, clearly moving to some drum beat in her head as she swirled the water around her, keeping it moving constantly, her body like liquid as she bent over backwards, sending an ice spear into a tree, and she turned her backbend into a flip, her legs long and lean, her muscles rippling. The sweat on her body glistened in the sun, and her deep, labored breaths made her chest heave, straining against the thin fabric, and Zuko licked his lips, trying to pull his brain out of an increasingly inappropriate place.

"The Crown Prince will be pleased, your majesty."

"Until he realizes how much work is involved," Zuko mumbled.

He was pretty sure the temperature hadn't actually tripled, but it sure as hell felt like it, and the proper thing to do would be to turn away from the window and bury his head in the mountain of papers on his desk. If he turned away from the window, though, he'd miss Katara walking into the pond and completely immersing herself in the water. Or her coming out of the pond, soaking wet…her clothes sticking to her…

Zuko took a deep breath and silently thanked Agni for this heat wave, especially when Katara froze the water still on her, and a shiver rolled down her back. She hugged herself, looking very satisfied at finally finding some relief from the heat, and Zuko burned this image into his mind, filing it away for later.

"Your majesty, _please_, we're all tired and burned out, but the quicker we get through with this meeting, the quicker we can all be on our way."

When he turned around, the financial minister looked incredibly nervous, possibly having realized that he shouldn't talk to his sovereign that way, and the other advisors gathered started to inch away. Zuko only smiled and took his seat behind his desk.

"No, no, we can get through this."

This only made them more nervous. Usually, Zuko was very tense in the run-up to the summer season, but there was no anger in him this time. He could already tell this was going to be a fantastic summer season.

* * *

><p>AN: Ugh, guys, writing is _hard_ right now. Not entirely happy with this, but here it is. I wanted to get something up here. Anywhoo, I imagine Zuko and Katara to be _that couple_. The ones who, no matter how old they are, are always snuggled up to each other or holding hands or giving each other fuck me eyes. They're passionate people who love hard, and I think it would completely gross out and embarrass their kids, but in the end, they come to appreciate having some positive relationship role models. Because, let's face it, there aren't too many of those in Avatar. Good thing the Gaang is around.


End file.
